Saddle.



No. 853,675. PATENTED MAY 14, 1907.

P. S. BRODIE.

SADDLE. 'APPLIOATION FILED JULY 16.1906.

m; uonms PErER's ca. wAsnmm-o, n. c.

PATnioK s. BRODIE, OF BOSTON,

TO FRANCIS W. MARTIN,

" UNITED sTA'rns P TENT onrion.

MASSACHUSETTS, ASSIGNOR OF ONE-HALF OF BOSTON, MASSACHUSETTS.

SADDLE.

Specification of Letters Patent.

Patented May 14, 1907.

To all whom it may concern.-

' Be it known that I, PATRIOKS. BRODIE, a citizen of the United States, residing at Boston, county of Suffolk, State of Massachusetts, have invented a certain new and useful Improvement in Saddles, of which the following is a specification, reference being had therein to the accompanying drawings.

My invention has for its object to provide a saddle which shall have all the valuable qualities of any of the various saddles having open centers and which at the same time shall be less expensive to construct, lighter in wei ht and'less likely to chafe or injure the bac of the animal upon which it is used. It is also more comfortable for the rider as well as for the horse. The saddle is arranged so that by moving it sli htly forward or backward upon the backo the animal, it will rest in a different place, so that in cases of hard usage where soreness has been produced, the position of the saddle may be changed and the use of the horse continued. The saddle is so constructed that the maximum amount of ventilation is had, there being a large open space occupying the central portion of the saddle, so that free circulation of the air between the horse and the rider, is permitted.

My improved construction which provides a spring between the portion on which the rider sits and the portion which rests on the animal adds very greatly to the comfort of both the rider and the beast.

My improved saddle is also arranged so that it may pies, "when thus taken apart, a minimum of space. This arrangement makes the saddles especially valuable for travelers and for military purposes where a comfortable saddle which may be packed in a small space is re quired. It is also constructed so that when not in use the seat portion of the saddle may be turned up or closed like the leaves of a saddle.

book and fastened together by a chain and. padlock or other convenient means, so that no person other than the owner can use the The invention will be fully understood from the accompanying drawings taken in connection with the specification, and the novel features thereof are pointed out and clearly defined in the claims at the close of the specification.

Referring to the drawings-Figure 1 is a 3 is a side elevation of the parts in the position which they occupy when be taken apart readily and occuplan view of a saddle embodying my invention, the leathers which protect the knees of the rider being removed for clearness of illustration. Fig. 2 is a side elevation of the sad- .dle, the parts being in the position which Fig.

they occupy when the saddle is in use.

saddle with the not in use.

In the drawings,the portion of the saddle which rests upon the horses back consists essentially of the U-shap'ed front or shoulder pad 10 and a rear pad 11 joined together by some convenient means, as, for instance, the plateshown at 12. These two pads 10 and 11 may be constructed with some suitable frame of stiff material, as for instance, steel or aluminium covered with leather and provided on the underside with a suitable pad 13. It will be seen that the space occupie on the horses back by these pads is very small so that by moving the saddle forward or backward two or three inches, it will rest upon an entirely different place. be seen that there is a large central space unoccupied by the saddle which permit-s complete ventilation for the horses back. This also permits anyone to put his hand between the horses back and the portion of the saddle I l hinged to hinge-members 19 and 20 which are removably attached to the frames of the pads 10 and 11. In the drawings, 1 have shown the hinge-members 19 and 20 as attached by means of the screws 21. This arrangement permits the two portions 15 and 16 of the seat to swing about the hinges and to be turned up like the leaves of a book into the position shown in Fig. 3 and fastened together if desired, as, for instance, by a short chain 22 and a'dlock 23, so that the saddle can be used on y by its owner.

4 Beneath the ends of the frames and upon the pads 10 and 11 are located cushions or springs 24 upon which the seat rests and It will also pads 10 and 11,

zot

the stirrup leathers or with which give to the two halves 15 and 16 of the seat a slight springiness in addition to the resiliency of the pads provided on the frames of the seat.

The seat is made quite narrow, so that a l rge open space is left as seen in the draw- This seat affords sufficient and com fortable support for the rider, and insures perfect ventilation between the horse and the rider, thereby reducing the danger of chafing to a minimum.

At 26 and 27 are indicated the hooks or irons to receive the straps or leathers which support the stirrup irons. Flaps of leather may be placed on the saddle on each side to protect the'riders knees from contact with the sides of the animal When it is desired to transport the saddle,

' i by taking out the screws 21 and the front and rear pads are separated from each other, so that the saddle resolves itself into three small pieces which may be packed for shipment or transportation in an exceedingly small space.

When the frames of the saddle strueted of aluminium, it is weight of the saddle is very at the same time the saddle comfort and protection for both the horse and its rider. The saddle may be provided with knee flaps and other coverings as desired. It may also be made in different shapes with high or low pommel and eantle as desired, according to the use to whieh it is to be put.

What I claim is:

The improved saddle comprising a front pad and a back pad, a seat in two halves hinged to the said front and back pads and cushions in the angle of the hinges between the said halves of the seat and the front and back pads respectively.

In testimony whereof I all ix my signature, in presence of two witnesses.

PATRICK S. BRODIE.

are eonl'ound that the small, but that all ords complete IVitnesses:

GEORGE P. DIKE,

JOSEPHINE E. LONG. 

